Tracing their origins to Siberia, Huskies have developed the reputation of being a perfect pet, whether you live in an urban surrounding or along the countryside.
They were initially bred by semi-nomadic people to expand and increase their hold on the hunting grounds and later used as sled dogs. Their DNA closely resembles the original Chukchi dogs.
They were brought to The States in 1909 in The All Alaska Sweepstakes Race, and it was no surprise that they showed their dominance in the race by winning it.
Being originally bred in colder Atlantic regions, they usually have a double coat that helps maintain their internal body temperature during frosty winters.
They also have a historical significance, especially in Nome, where diphtheria disease almost acquired the shape of a pandemic in 1925. The medicines required by the villages affected by the disease were to be transported from over 1000 miles away, and due to the non-availability of the trains in those days and the remoteness of the region, there was no other option left for the locals but to use the carts pulled by these tamed beasts.
In an almost heroic manner, this breed proved its resilience, covering 674 miles in that mission, to be exact, in the total time of 127.5 hours. Owing to their outstanding service to the town locals, the breed became heroes in the region and got significant paper coverage.
In this article, we look at some of the wonderful and unique aspects of the breed and a few of the factors that can affect your decision to raise a husky as your new furry friend. Read On!
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A Quick Look at the Evolution of the Breed
As we all know, humans and canines have a rich and diverse history together across the paths of evolution. The human-canine relationship has grown out of mutual trust and appreciation. The first round of domestication took place after wolves started to create a beneficial relationship with early human settlements.
These wolves got food from their human friends while protecting early human colonies from various predators.
As Huskies are very closely related to their wolf cousins, they share some of the same characteristics, including an almost incredible and seemingly undepletable reservoir of energy, resilient determination, and undying loyalty to their human friends.
In contrast, just as wolves, this breed is fiercely independent, mischievously cunning, and very difficult to control if they set their minds on doing something.
In this light, let us look at some of the pros and cons of raising a husky puppy.
What are the Pros of Having Huskies?
They have relatively high endurance levels than their peers since they can survive on low amounts of food and in frosty cold weather. Moreover, they can also survive harsh summers, but they might struggle due to their thick coats. Being excellent hunters, they make great hunting companions and are comfortable carrying loads across large distances.
Given their nature, they may seem wild and energetic, but that doesn’t make them any less suitable as pets.
They Are Extremely Playful
Huskies, with plenty of endurance, are very playful and athletic. They often enjoy the great outdoors, making them an excellent companion for those who want an active lifestyle with lots of outdoor activities such as cycling, walking, camping, and biking.
This breed is highly valued for the ease with which they can be trained as it is bred for endurance, resilience, and obedience.
With a husky in your home, you’ll never run out of excuses to set out into the wilderness and play along with your companion.
They Are Pretty Independent
They are pretty much used to living on their own. Hence, if you are not feeling particularly well during some days, they are less likely to miss spending time with you. Instead, they will keep on playing with themselves, running all around the house.
This also means that they are quite sensible and can comfortably adjust to specific routines.
Using their brilliant minds, they become aware of the layout and location of your house and quarters and can navigate using memory over large distances as well.
This means you can leave them out to explore, and they will come right back in time for dinner if you live in a rural setting.
As per the experts’ opinion, they were initially bred to last on a minimum amount of food.
It is not uncommon for this breed to eat a meal from time to time and stay perfectly healthy.
While a husky will need less food per pound relative to a different breed, a healthy diet rich in protein and fat is still necessary. For the most suitable diet, visit a breeder.
This aspect of their physiology means that you will need not to give them too much to eat. Instead, it is best to provide huskies with a diet rich in nutrients yet in smaller portions.
They Like to Stay Clean and Tidy
An excellent aspect of their personality is that they always love to keep themselves clean and tidy. It won’t be uncommon to find your husky grooming themselves on their own. This makes them a perfect house pet and can significantly facilitate owners if they can’t groom their pets during the working week.
Paired with their independent nature, this means that the breed is incredibly low-maintenance and will often do most of your work for you when it comes to grooming and cleanliness.
They are Very Clever and Intelligent
Huskies are known for their ingenuity and cleverness across the globe. Due to their athletic and active nature, they instantly process their surroundings and quickly come to conclusions and decisions. They also have an excellent memory and spatial awareness, which helps them as an instinct in the wild but translates as intelligence as pets.
This means that they can quickly pick up on commands, training, and emotional cues from their humans, always vigilant and attentive to your movements and signals.
Although huskies may look fierce and cross due to their facial features, they are usually very friendly and comfortable around new people and places.
This makes them a bit on the less acceptable side when it comes to guarding premises, but at the same time, they get along well with kids and visitors and are usually not very shy around new people.
Due to their social and playful nature, they can comfortably interact with anyone they start liking. They can be taken to new places without having to worry about their anxiety or stress.
They Communicate Energetically
Huskies have an excellent outgoing personality, making them enjoyable to interact with. one amazing aspect of their personality is their ability to communicate effectively and energetically with humans and other dogs. They are notorious for being extra loud, and most husky owners say that the pup will not just bark; they actually “talk” by varying their pitch and tone and howling or imitating conversation. This means they reply in kind to your prompts, and you can engage them with long conversations during which they will put in their full weight and fulfill their end of the conversation very energetically.
This can be a nuisance for some, who like to have a quiet and calm atmosphere in their homes, but as we mentioned before, calm has very little to do with huskies.
Husky puppies and adults are always brimming with energy, which is clearly reflected in this unique aspect of their personality, which makes them very endearing to most people.
We don’t really need to stress on this point. The chances are that you are reading this article because you think huskies look super cute! This is very true because huskies have an incredible visual appeal due to their symmetric features, long shiny coats, and the wonderful expressions they portray.
Bred for their stamina and endurance, Huskies have a very lean and toned muscle mass that looks exceptionally beautiful and will leave you admiring their appearance every time you look at them.
With a husky by your side, you should be prepared to hear a wide range of compliments (and a good few complaints).
Although we believe that all dogs are beautiful in their own way, the aesthetic appearance of the Husky breed makes them exceptionally visually striking and paired with their strong-willed personality, you get a dog that is bold, energetic, and commanding in all aspects.
(Check out the 25 pros and cons of owning a corgi!)
What Are The Cons of Having Huskies?
While they have many lovable qualities compared to the other domesticated canines, they still have some weak spots that one needs to consider. Becoming too comfortable with strangers, their love for bugs and creepy crawlies, and their adoration of Houdini-style escape stunts are a few aspects of their personality that might be too chaotic for some.
They are Known Escapists
Huskies are pretty much an outdoorsy breed of dogs than the other species that can stay put inside your home throughout the day.
They will try to escape out of your house as soon as you let them do so. That’s why they have also been assigned the nickname of “Houdini.”
They have also been known to squeeze in and out of tiny holes left behind in fences, which can be harmful to them as some fences are also electrified.
Even though some huskies have such a zeal to explore the outside world, they will happily bear with the shock and escape out. The same amount of care should also be taken if you are walking your husky without any leash. The chances of running away are high as they are herd dogs and love to cover land and mark their territory.
They are Known to Attack Abruptly
Being bred originally to fight against actual beasts like wolves and other canines to safeguard the herds, the internal drive to hunt and attack is high in huskies. Many cases of them attacking cats and even little dogs have been reported, and many of them again proved to be quite lethal.
Still, no straightforward rule can be established to determine whether a husky is going to act aggressively.
There is a certain degree of uncertainty attached to them in this regard as some owners reported their huskies to be quite friendly, on the contrary, with other little animals.
You surely don’t want to expect them to be a potato couch.
If kept in the house, they are known to jump all around. Hence if you are an esteemed procrastinator, it is advised not to have them as pets and instead choose a calmer breed.
This aspect makes them unsuitable for homeowners who are not home for most of the day since you wouldn’t like your homes all messed up on your return from work.
However, an easy way to calm down huskies is to take them on a long walk or let them play and run around regularly. This helps them use their energies, and it will render them tired enough to cause less trouble inside the house.
They Are Quite Stubborn
Their incredible energy, intelligence, and determination make them a prime example of stubbornness.
Once they have their minds set on doing something, you can be sure that they will not rest until it’s done.
From helping rearrange your flower beds to chasing the squirrel around the yard, you’ll need to take a firm stand with your husky if they start grinding their heels to the ground.
This attitude is most pronounced with puppies, as Huskies are sometimes called the Cats of the Dog world. This is because Husky puppies are mostly going to ignore whatever you are saying and will only listen to you when they want to.
They have a Strong Pack Drive.
This breed is very outgoing, but it is independent and free-spirited and has a powerful pack pull. It can develop kennel fever, leading to loss of appetite, diarrhea, and a nervous state of mind. This breed will not be right for you if you’re usually away from home and must keep your puppy locked up inside the house.
This aspect of their personality is most pronounced when interacting with other dogs. A husky will be very comfortable with other dogs, but it can lead to them paying more attention to their friend instead of listening to you.
This aspect can be used to your advantage if you wish to raise them as an Alpha, as they will quickly take command of a pack if they find the space and can be used to lead other dogs, as apparent from their long and celebrated history as sled dogs.
(Find out the 26 pros and cons of owning a golden retriever.)
They Shed Heavily
You can expect them to shed their coats twice a year, and since their coats are so thick and dense, it will take time to clean your house afterward. Hence, it is advised just to let that be and vacuum the house by the end, after a few weeks, to save you plenty of time.
As with all dogs, seasonal molting is necessary for their continued health and wellbeing. But if you have any allergies or are not comfortable having to brush out large quantities of fur from their coat, you might find it challenging to raise a husky indoors.
They Like to Dig – A LOT
One small aspect of their behavior that can be exceptionally irritating is their love for digging around and uprooting any patch of ground they direct their attention towards.
If you are particularly fond of your neatly trimmed garden, it can prove to be incredibly challenging to keep your Husky away from the flower beds.
Paired with their love for bugs and creepy crawlies, Huskies can leave your backyard a tattered mess of earth and ruined plants if they are left to have their way with it.
The best way to mitigate this behavior is to let them roam around open grounds and parks where they can openly let loose their fascination and dig to their heart’s content.
We very highly advise against letting your Husky near your prized flowerbeds or decoration hedges, as they will leave a trail of chaos in their wake.
Puppies Can be Hard to Train
Although the breed is incredibly smart and creative, Husky puppies can be highly challenging to train effectively if you don’t know how to handle them.
Their strong pack drive, love for independence, extreme energy, and their knack for stubbornness can leave you frustrated when it comes to teaching a husky puppy some manners.
In the presence of other dogs, they are very unlikely to pay you any real attention, as they are more interested in their fellow pack animals rather than your commands.
Annoying as this may seem, this aspect of their personality can actually end up making it easier to train them if you know the right way to go about the matter.
Because they pay close attention to other dogs, they can quickly learn appropriate behavior by watching other dogs act and copy their actions.
Their instincts will lead them to imitate their pack, and having a well-trained adult dog around a husky puppy is the best way to accelerate their training in a very effective manner.
Interested In Training Your Husky The Right Way?
If you haven’t trained your husky properly, then this is the perfect time to start. Whatever bad behavior your shepherd has, whether it’s barking at night or other bad behaviors, using the right training program is the key to having an obedient and happy pup.
With Brain Training For Dogs you’ll save yourself a ton of time and effort. Instead of banging your head against the wall trying to figure out why your dog won’t listen, you’ll follow a path that has been tried, tested, and most importantly, that’s given proven results. Not to mention the fact, you’ll be able to fit the course around your schedule, not fit your schedule around a trainer or obedience class.
So instead of worrying about whether they’re going to be well-behaved or not, you’ll only have to worry about how much fun you’ll have with them!
And in most cases it’s still going to be:
Cheaper than hiring a professional.
Cheaper than replacing everything they might break.
And definitely cheaper than a lawsuit against you, if they decide to bite someone.
Just imagine how great it will feel to finally be able to trust your husky completely and never worry whether they’ll be naughty or not. Instead, you’ll have the peace of mind that you have a well-behaved pup, and the boundaries you set for them, will always be there, EVEN IF YOU’RE NOT.
And the best part is it also has a 60-day money-back guarantee! So there’s no reason not to give Brain Training For Dogs a try!
So if you’re tired of your dog’s bad behavior, or how they react around other people and pooches, then give it a try! You’ll be amazed by the results!
(You can also check out a full review here, to learn exactly what the course has to offer!)
Defining the Right Owner for A Husky
Although there is never a sure-shot rule that can specify or match a specific bred to a particular kind of person, there are nevertheless general preferences on which we can base our decision and conclude whether getting a husky is the right choice for you.
If we focus on the lively, athletic, and active nature of the breed, a person who follows a similar lifestyle will probably be quite comfortable with a husky.
If you like the outdoors, prefer to go camping, and spend a lot of time in outdoor activities, raising a breed like the Husky will be a rewarding, enjoyable, and fun experience.
If, on the other hand, you live in a confined urban space and can not find much time for outdoor activities or games and exploration, it is best if you opt for more docile and calmer breeds that are comfortable staying indoors for more extended periods.
In addition, raising a husky requires a bit of patience, and you will undoubtedly need to invest time in their training and physical exercise.
We again reiterate that if you lead a more sedentary lifestyle and don’t like to engage in outdoor activities, it is better to choose a different breed.
On the other hand, if you have adequate space, the proper time for training and exercise, and enough willpower and patience to deal with a cute and cuddly yet stubborn and strong-willed animal, getting a husky is the best decision you can ever make.
Conclusion
Huskies have come to be much adored across the canine breeding community. Their resilience, active demeanor, and incredibly winning personality make them a must-have for dog lovers globally. Although they are well-suited and can adjust to various lifestyles and environments, they have a few specific requirements that everyone can not fulfill due to their living conditions and time constraints.
In the long run, a husky can bring you a lot of joy and loyal friendship, just like any other dog. But it is worthwhile to take your time and weigh the pros and cons of raising a husky before you move forward with your final decision.
If you have already made up your mind by now, we wish good health to your new pup and hope that you can craft a long-lasting relationship with your new pet!
